NYPD reverses hate crimes reporting changes

(The Center Square) — The New York City Police Department is quietly walking back a controversial policy change requiring the city to only report confirmed hate crimes, following a backlash over the new methodology.

The department’s Hate Crimes Task Force’s latest monthly report said hate crimes increased by nearly 12% in the first quarter of 2026, a surge the agency was driven largely by anti-Jewish attacks. The spike in hate crimes comes as murders and other violent crimes in the Big Apple dropped during the same period, according to the report.

But the report also revealed that the NYPD will now list both “reported” and “confirmed” hate crimes in its monthly tally. That’s a reversal from a policy change less than a month ago when the NYPD announced it would only include “confirmed” hate crimes in its monthly report, not cases that are under investigation.

In the latest report, the agency said disclosure of both sets of numbers in the monthly reports “will enhance transparency and reflects best practice in connection with ...